More Citadel

You see people in full cover, to just the eyes to just the face, to Christian Syrians who dress as Westerners might. But sometimes, in order to spend time with someone special of the opposite sex you have to hide in the obvious places. What do a bunch of tourists care about a couple chatting on a step

It is quite dark in the bath house and there are a number of different rooms. They have been set up with mannequins showing typical use of each room. There is one real person, a museum attendant, who stays in there all the time to ensure models aren’t interfered with etc. But part of the fun of the job is to stay perfectly still as the tourists come clattering noisily across the tiles into the room, and then, as their eyes adjust, suddenly move. Tai did this, and (from his perspective) suddenly one of the dummies opened their mouth and exhaled cigarette smoke.

The view from within the bath house looking up at the domes

Looking up past the bath house domes to the walls and minaret of the mosque.

a different view of the mosque, from across the ruins of the shops and houses.

the inside of the dome of the mosque

the courtyard of the mosque

In 1996 they uncovered the remains of a temple, within the Citadel, that was constructed in the middle of the third millennium BC. A later reconstruction of the temple dates back around the 10th Century BC. The later phase yielded the stunning series of reliefs carved onto slaps of basaltic stones depicting the storm along with an entourage of gods, kings, lions and mythical creatures. The stone reliefs are positioned in their original location.

the amphitheatre. This is still used for  performances and functions to this day. 10 years ago Dani’s sister Sara graduated from high school in Aleppo, and the ceremony was conducted here in this amphitheatre.

The ceiling of the Throne Room: beautiful!!! Too many details of exquisite work.

From the citadel we look down over part of the souk to one of the main entrances to the souk. We can make out the traffic jam of yellow taxis, all banked up and slowly moving foreward.